Principal Software Engineer 188211-1

Principal Software Engineer 188211-1

Recruiter: Open Source (Pty) Ltd

Job Ref: JHB002162/KM

Date posted: Monday, August 31, 2026

Location: Midrand, South Africa

SUMMARY: Principal Software Engineer

📍 Johannesburg, South Africa (4 days onsite)

Build the Future of AI-Native Software Engineering

We're looking for a rare kind of engineer.

Someone with 20+ years of software engineering experience who still loves writing code, solving complex problems, and learning emerging technologies before they become mainstream. This is not a management role. It's a hands-on technical leadership opportunity for an exceptional engineer who can architect enterprise-scale solutions, build production software, mentor senior teams, and help shape how AI transforms software development.

POSITION INFO: What You'll Do Design and build enterprise-grade software solutions from concept to production. Define architecture across cloud, backend, web, mobile, and AI platforms. Develop production software using AI-assisted engineering practices. Build intelligent applications using LLMs, AI agents, RAG, MCP, and modern AI frameworks. Deliver native mobile solutions (iOS/Android) and cross-platform applications using Flutter or similar technologies. Partner with clients and engineering teams to solve complex business and technical challenges. Mentor senior engineers and influence engineering excellence through hands-on leadership. Evaluate emerging technologies and turn innovation into business value. What You'll Bring 20+ years of software engineering experience. Proven success designing and delivering complex enterprise systems. Deep expertise in software architecture, cloud platforms (Azure, AWS and/or GCP), distributed systems, and modern engineering practices. Strong hands-on development experience and a passion for coding. Experience with native mobile development (Swift and/or Kotlin) and Flutter. Practical experience building AI-powered applications and embracing AI-native engineering tools such as GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Claude Code, Gemini Code Assist, and similar platforms. Strong stakeholder engagement and consulting skills. Bonus Points Experience with: Multi-agent AI systems Edge or on-device AI React Native or .NET MAUI Open source contributions Technical speaking, writing, or community leadership Why Join Us? You'll work on some of the most exciting challenges in modern software engineering, helping large organisations adopt AI-native engineering practices while remaining deeply hands-on. If you're the kind of engineer who still loves building software after two decades and believes AI will redefine the future of engineering, we'd love to talk. Interested? If you're the kind of engineer who still loves building software after two decades and believes AI will redefine the future of engineering, we'd love to hear from you. ðŸ“

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